Of Birthdays and Best Friends
by golden-perception
Summary: Kurt meets Blaine's cousin  and best friend  at her birthday party, where he shares with her an unexpected heart to heart. Written as a birthday present for Antifairytale  aka bowtiewearingowl . Klaine.


**A/N: This was written for my friend Erin's (known online as antifairytale or bowtiewearingowl) birthday in June. She's already read it, but because I didn't have a beta at the time, I never posted it. Well, I have a beta reader now (the lovely Dia, or chocolate6969), and today just happens to be out six-month friendiversary… so here you go!**

**Erin: You're awesome. I love you to bits. Enjoy! ;D**

**Please review if you have the time.**

**I don't own Glee.**

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><p>"And so everyone was yelling over each other, and Wes was banging his gavel on the table, and then suddenly, the gavel snapped in half…Everyone in the room went silent. The look on Wes's face was priceless; I wish I had a picture. We all stood there for a minute before David called for the meeting to be adjourned. He told me later that he had to go to CVS for superglue before Wes would stop moping."<p>

Once Kurt had caught his breath from his laughing fit, he exhaled and squeezed his boyfriend's hand over the coffee shop table.

"So," he said, casting Blaine a playful glance. "What are your plans for this weekend?"

"Actually, I've been meaning to ask you about that," said Blaine. "I was wondering... It's my cousin's nineteenth birthday on Saturday, and I was thinking... wWe're really close - she was the only friend I had when I was at my old school, especially after I came out. I already have one idea, but I want to get her something really special. She really likes clothes, so I was hoping you'd help me pick out something nice? And she's been dying to meet you, so you could come to her party. What do you think?"

Kurt brightened. "I'd love to help pick out a present for her! But are you sure she'll be okay with me coming to the party?"

Blaine grinned. "Of course she'll be okay with it. You should hear her when we Skype. 'Blaine, how's Kurt doing? Blaine, are you treating Kurt right? _Blaine_, when do I get to meet Kurt?' I've told her so much about you; she loves you already."

Kurt smiled back. "Well if she knows so much about me, you're going to have to tell me about her."

. . .

"Well, her name is Emily," Blaine began, as they walked through the mall the next day. "She's a freshman in college, majoring in English. She's a huge Harry Potter dork, just like me. She likes to write, and she's also a really talented artist, though she doesn't always realize it. She's the first person I came out to."

Kurt took his boyfriend's hand and swung their interlaced fingers between them. "She sounds great. I can see why you to are so close."

Blaine turned to smile at him. "She's _amazing._.. And really smart. She watches the History Channel for fun. And she's gorgeous too. I can't understand why she doesn't have a boyfriend... Except that no one is good enough."

Kurt squeezed his hand. "You really love her." It was nice, seeing his boyfriend so happy. Blaine had seemed stressed lately, between Dalton's grueling final exams, and his father's recent attitude towards him, which had started after he had brought Kurt home to meet his family.

Blaine squeezed back. "I do. Before you, she was the only one who liked the same things as me. Musicals, literature, fashion. It's been hard though, with her away at college. I haven't seen her since Christmas." he said, leaning his head on Kurt's shoulder. As they walked, Kurt laid his head on top of Blaine's.

"So," said Kurt, after a few moments of silence. "What kind of clothes does she like? What's her style?"

"Hmm..." said Blaine, pondering for a moment. "She likes unusual things. Like vintage, sort of. Florals, polka dots, vests, floaty skirts. That sort of thing. She also likes funky jewelry."

Kurt mentally ran through a list of shops in this particular mall, before picking one, and informing Blaine of his choice.

"Great," said Blaine. "But first we have one other stop to make." He placed an arm around Kurt's waist, and led him towards a small stationary stationery store.

. . .

The day after their successful shopping expedition was Emily's birthday. The plan was for Blaine to pick Kurt up from his house at 4:00, from which they would head to Blaine's Aunt's house.

At 3:58, Kurt was sitting by the front door, outfit and hair immaculate, and a small gift box in his hand. Kurt had insisted on buying Blaine's cousin something, much to his boyfriend's protests.

Blaine's midnight blue Mercedes pulled up to the curb. Kurt yelled a goodbye to his father, who gave his a stern look and told him to be back by midnight, before climbing into the car with his boyfriend.

Kurt immediately realized immediately that Blaine was tense. "What's the matter?" he asked, taking the other boy's hand. Blaine sighed.

"Turns out, my father decided to come after all. Normally he avoids my mother's family like the plague."

Kurt took a deep breath in and exhaled, then said slowly, "I think… from what you've told me about Emily… I don't think she'll stand for any of his crap. And I'm sure he's not stupid enough to do anything in front of your whole family."

Blaine gripped his hand tighter. "I hope you're right."

. . .

They arrived twenty minutes later, and it seemed Blaine's worries were already forgotten. He practically bounced up to the door.

"Excited much?" Kurt laughed, following after him.

Blaine just grinned, and knocked thrice on the large wooden door. A few seconds later, it was opened by a pretty blonde woman wearing an apron. "Blaine, sweetheart!" she exclaimed, stepping forward to hug him. "It's been so long since we've seen you! Emily is so excited, I think she's more excited about seeing you than the fact that it's her birthday."

She pulled back, and noticed Kurt. "Oh! You must be Kurt! Blaine's told us so much about you! All good things, I promise. It's lovely to meet you, I'm Blaine's Aunt Carrie." She held out her hand and Kurt took it. Her handshake was firm, but warm and welcoming.

"Likewise," Kurt said, smiling at Blaine's aunt.

She returned the grin, and stepped back to let them inside the house. The foyer was lit by a pretty crystal chandelier. The light blue color of the walls contrasted with the rich cherry color of the small chest of drawers adjacent to the door and the grand staircase across from it. Overall, the room looked like it had been designed by a professional. If this was the foyer, Kurt was dying to see the rest of the house.

Before he had a chance to compliment Carrie of the décor, another person spoke.

"Blaine!"

A blonde girl flew down the staircase and threw her arms around Blaine's neck. Blaine stumbled back a few steps and wrapped his arms around the girl's waist to compensate for the sudden weight that had barreled into him. He laughed, and lifted the girl (who could only be Emily) up, spinning her around a few times.

They were both grinning like maniacs when Blaine set Emily down. They released their hold on each other, but only slightly. Blaine's hands were still on her waist, and Emily's were resting on his shoulders.

"I missed you so much!" exclaimed Blaine, the goofy grin still plastered on his face.

Emily smacked his shoulder. "And you think I didn't? Don't tell me you've lost all your brains since December."

Kurt had crossed his arms over his chest, and was watching the scene with an amused smile. Blaine was hardly ever this happy, except on the rare occasions they were able to get some time away from the world together. He was always so stressed out and it was nice to see him carefree.

It was then that Emily noticed Kurt. She proceeded to smack Blaine's arm again. "Blaine," she said, smirking, and looking back and forth from him to Kurt. "Aren't you going to introduce me?" She elbowed him in the ribs a few times.

Blaine's grin grew even bigger, if that were possible. "Emily, this is my boyfriend Kurt Hummel. Kurt, this is my cousin Emily."

Kurt held out his hand to her. "It's great to meet you. Blaine's told me a lot about you."

Emily however, batted his and away. "Nuh uh, nope. I don't do handshakes. I'm a hugger. Besides, I feel like I know you already, so come over here, you."

Kurt, surprised, but not displeased, stepped forward to give Blaine's cousin a light hug. Emily had other plans. She wrapped her arms tightly around Kurt's waist, giving him a warm embrace that lasted a few seconds. When she stepped back, she put her hands on her hips, and looked Kurt up and down. Eyes widening, she turned to Blaine again.

"_Wow_, Blaine. He's even more gorgeous in person than in the pictures you sent me."

Both boys blushed bright red.

"_Emily!_" Blaine hissed.

She grinned at him. "What? I'm just telling the truth! It's a compliment!"

Kurt smirked. "So Emily… which pictures did he send you exactly?"

Blaine's face looked like a fire truck, but Emily just scoffed. "A better question is which ones _didn't _he send me. Sectionals, Regionals, first date, second date, prom… I wouldn't be surprised if he sent me every picture you two ever took together."

Blaine groaned. "Why did I miss you again?"

Kurt turned to Blaine. "Really? I thought you were exaggerating when you said you'd told her everything about me."

Blaine ran a hand through his hair. "Well…"

Luckily for Blaine, Carrie saved him from any further embarrassment. She laid a hand on Emily's shoulder. "Em, honey, if you're finished terrorizing our guests, we could go sit in the living room. I think we'll all be more comfortable there."

Emily kissed her mother on the cheek. "Okay, Mama."

Carrie turned to Blaine. "Blaine, would you mind setting the table? Dinner's almost ready, and your parents should be here soon." Blaine nodded, and kissed Kurt on the cheek, murmuring a "be right back" in his ear before following his aunt into the kitchen.

Kurt followed Emily into the living room. She sat in a large armchair, curling her legs under herself and flattening her skirt with her hands, while Kurt sat on the edge of a love seat.

Emily turned to Kurt again. Her smile and eyes were softer, and she reached out to take his hand. "In all seriousness Kurt, It's wonderful to finally meet you. I don't think I've ever seen Blaine happier than the day he finally got up the courage to kiss you. You make him happy, and you've been there for him, and I'm glad."

Kurt smiled shyly. "It's my pleasure," he said

She squeezed his hand. "Blaine told me what you went through, I hope you don't mind. I… I just want to say that you're really brave. Blaine… he had no one, except me. He was tormented every day, and neither of us could do anything to stop it. He was falling apart at the seams, and I couldn't do anything. He told me all you went through, and how strong you were. I mean, to last that long… and to go back…"

Kurt ducked his head. "I don't think I could have done it without Blaine. He helped me so much. He was always there to talk to… and he texted me the word "courage" every day. In between _every class_. Without that, I wouldn't have made it as long as I did."

Emily squeezed his hand again. "That sounds like Blaine." She hesitated, before speaking again. "He really cares about you, Kurt. Even before he woke up and realized he was in love with you, he cared about you. At first, he was so determined he was going to help you, that you weren't going to end up like him. But later, when he was venting to me on the phone, I realized he wasn't angry because these things were happening to someone. He was angry they were happening to _you_."

Kurt swallowed and tried to blink back his tears. "I… Thank you, Emily. It means a lot that you told me that. And I'm glad Blaine has you, now and then. You're pretty amazing yourself."

Emily blushed, and squeezed Kurt's hand one more time before releasing it. Not a minute later, Blaine entered the living room and sat down next to Kurt. Noticing his watery eyes, Blaine took Kurt's hand and whispered softly "Hey, what's wrong?"

Kurt sniffed, and wiped his eyes. "Nothing. I'm fine. _Really,_" he said, giving Blaine a look. Blaine gave Kurt a quizzical look, but let it drop.

The rest of the evening passed without incident. The boys and Emily talked about Emily's college, Dalton, and Glee Club (while she claimed not to be a very good singer, Emily was quite the music enthusiast). She loved Kurt's crazy New Directions stories, and made him promise to introduce her to them this summer.

Blaine's parents arrived not long later, and Mr. Anderson seemed content to sulk in the background and glare at Kurt whenever he got the chance. Emily made a show of not acknowledging his existence (in the room, or otherwise).

After dinner, the entire family retired to the living room to give Emily her presents. She received a rather impressive stack of books (along with a few other trinkets) from her parents. When she opened her clothes from Blaine (which were floral sundress, and leather vest, complete with a pocket watch they'd found at an antiques shop), she made a little squeaking noise and jumped out of her chair to give Blaine a hug.

It was safe to say Blaine's other gift, the one they'd picked up at the stationery store, was by far her favorite. It was a beautiful red leather notebook with her initials embossed in swirly cursive on the cover. Printed on the first page were the words: "The role of a writer is not to say what we can all say, but what we are unable to say. –Anaís Nin." The journal was locked with a silver clasp, and the key was on a delicate silver chain she could wear around her neck. When Emily unwrapped this gift, her gasp was audible. She ran her fingers over the leather lightly, before hanging the key around her neck. She looked and Blaine, and just beamed at him. "This is amazing, Blaine. Thank you so much." Blaine had a happy smile on his face for the rest of the night.

Emily loved Kurt's gift (a pair of dangly crystal earrings in the shape of hearts that sent rainbow reflectionslight everywhere when they hit the light) almost as much as Blaine's. After realizing they were from him, she got up out of her chair and kissed his cheek, calling him a sweetheart and telling him he didn't have to get her anything.

The night passed with laughter and friendly conversation. When it was time to leave, hugs were exchanged all around. Emily pointed a finger ant Blaine and Kurt and made them swear to keep in touch. She would be flying back to New York the next day, but would be coming back for the whole summer a couple weeks later. After a few final hugs, Blaine and Kurt drove off.

About halfway through the ride to the Hudmel house, Kurt squeezed Blaine's hand. "You're happy," he said simply. "It's nice."

Blaine smiled. "Well, my two best friends have finally met, and they seem to have hit it off. What's not to be happy about?"

Kurt leaned his head against Blaine's shoulder. "I'm pretty happy too."

Blaine turned to look at him. "Why?"

"I don't know," he said. "Life is just really good right now, you know?"

Blaine pulled up in front of Kurt's house. He turned his head to see his boyfriend looking up at him with expectant eyes. "Yeah, I know," said Blaine, pressing a kiss to Kurt's forehead. "I definitely know."


End file.
